Around 1 Million Tune in for Spartacus: Blood and Sand Premiere

If you could afford it, and you have cable TV, then you probably subscribed to the Starz network just to get their new TV show, “Spartacus: Blood and Sand”. The show’s premiere last Friday delivered the pay network’s best premiere ratings in its history, to the tune of about 1 million viewers — 553,000 viewers initially on the Starz channel, then another 460,000 followed suit when the episode re-aired on the Encore channel. The numbers are expected to increase once time-shifted numbers (DVRs, etc) are included later this week.

So what’s the draw of “Spartacus: Blood and Sand”? It’s basically a combination of “300” and a Cinemax late-night movie (aka Skinemax). Lots of blood and sex, sex and blood, and just when you thought you couldn’t stand anymore, more blood and sex. No wonder Starz has already renewed the show for a full second season.

“Spartacus: Blood and Sand” stars newcomer Andy Whitfield as the titular warrior turned slave, who leads a rebellion against his Roman captors. While bloodying it away in the arena under the tutelage of Peter Mensah’s Doctore, Spartacus pines for his beloved wife Sura (Erin Cummings). Meanwhile, Lucy Lawless and John Hannah, aka the funny guy from the “Mummy” movies, lords over our hero.

Get ready, folks, because in the second episode of “Spartacus: Blood and Sand”, we get to see the Roman version of Viagra. Plus, more sex and blood, and blood and sex.